How to Grow Potatoes from Sprouting Potatoes

Got some old potatoes in the pantry starting to sprout? Before you throw them out, consider growing fresh potatoes from those sprouts! With just a bit of soil, sprouting potatoes can produce a bountiful crop of delicious new potatoes in your garden

Growing potatoes from leftovers is an easy, fun way to get free potato plants. Below we’ll cover when and how to plant sprouted potatoes to grow your own spuds at home.

Why Plant Sprouting Potatoes?

Potatoes left too long in storage will start to sprout as they attempt to grow new plants. Once sprouting begins, potatoes become less appetizing to eat due to higher glycoalkaloid levels.

Rather than letting sprouted potatoes go to waste, repurpose them as seed potatoes! Those sprouts contain all the energy and nutrients needed to grow lush, productive potato plants.

Benefits of planting sprouted potatoes include:

• Makes use of potatoes you can no longer eat
• Provides free, easy potato plants
• Grows potatoes suited to your climate
• Produces harvests much faster than true seeds
• Fun project for beginning gardeners

So don’t discard old sprouted potatoes – with minimal effort, you can grow your own potatoes from them!

When to Plant Sprouted Potatoes

Sprouted potatoes can be planted as soon as sprouts emerge from the eyes. Tiny nubbins just 1⁄4 inch long are enough to get started.

Ideally, plant them in early spring once soils reach 45-50°F. This gives time for a long growing season and large yields. Potatoes sprouted earlier can be held in a cool spot until planting time.

You can also plant sprouted potatoes in summer for a fall crop. Allow at least 2 months of warm growing weather before your first expected fall frost.

Potatoes are quite hardy, tolerating light frosts. Avoid planting sprouted potatoes too late in fall when heavy frosts could damage young plants.

Preparing to Plant Sprouted Potatoes

Before planting, inspect your sprouted potatoes. Any with signs of rot should be discarded to avoid spreading disease. Select large, firm potatoes with vigorous sprouts.

Choose a planting spot in full sun with loose, well-draining soil. Amend dense or nutrient-poor soils with compost. Potatoes require consistent moisture but not waterlogged soil.

Spaced out sprouted potatoes ready for planting.

If sprouts are over 3 inches long, carefully remove the weaker, smaller sprouts. Gently handle the longest, healthiest looking sprouts to avoid snapping them off.

Retain some smaller sprouts too for backup. Damaged main sprouts can still grow if you plant carefully.

How to Plant Sprouted Potatoes

Planting sprouted potatoes is simple:

• Dig trenches or holes 6-8 inches deep. Space 12-16 inches apart.

• Place sprouted potatoes in the holes with the sprouts facing up.

• Cover sprouts with 3-4 inches of soil initially.

• As plants grow, gradually backfill trenches and cover lower leaves.

• Stop earthing up when plants start flowering. Tubers should be 6-8 inches deep.

• Water moderately and provide even moisture throughout growth.

Choose whether to plant sprouted potatoes whole or cut them into smaller sections. Whole potatoes yield faster initial growth. Cut sections result in more plants per potato but slower establishment.

Plant each sprouted potato with the cut side down and sprouts facing up. If sprouts emerge from all sides, just plant them sideways with sprouts toward the surface.

Caring for Potato Plants

Potato plants need minimal care beyond watering:

• Water 1-2 inches per week. Allow soil to partly dry between waterings.

• Hill or mound soil over plants as they grow to boost yields.

• Control weeds so they don’t compete for water and nutrients.

• Monitor for Colorado potato beetle and remove manually.

• Fertilize lightly with a balanced fertilizer once flowering begins.

Avoid over-watering and over-fertilizing, which can cause excess foliage at the expense of tubers. Focus care on consistent moisture and weed control for the best potato growth.

Harvesting Potatoes from Sprouts

New potatoes can be dug around 8 weeks after sprouted potatoes are planted, once plants finish flowering. Carefully dig outside the main plant, trying not to damage developing tubers.

For full-sized potatoes, allow plants to grow until they yellow and die back naturally. Wait 2 weeks after vines die before harvesting potatoes. Skins will set during this time, improving storage ability.

Gently remove potatoes from the ground. Cure freshly dug potatoes 1-2 weeks in a dark, humid location prior to storage.

Expect roughly 1 pound of small new potatoes per sprouted potato planted. Mature potato plants yield 10-15 pounds of large tubers per pound planted.

Enjoy your homegrown potatoes fried, mashed, baked, or roasted! Planting sprouted potatoes rewards you with bountiful harvests of delicious spuds.

Troubleshooting Potatoes Grown from Sprouts

Here are some potential issues and solutions for growing potatoes from old sprouted potatoes:

• Slow emergence: Ensure sprouts face up and soil stays moist. Cover only with a thin layer first.

• Leggy, weak plants: Plants lacked proper sunlight or consistent moisture early on.

• Few or no potatoes: Hot temps caused aborted flowers. Damage from pests. Poor pollination.

• Small yields: Harvested too early. Insufficient watering. Lack of nutrients.

• Green tubers: Potatoes became exposed to light from insufficient hilling. Still edible when peeled.

• Rotting potatoes: Overwatering leading to fungal issues. Avoid planting diseased seed potatoes.

Adjust care as needed to resolve problems in future growing seasons. Review growing conditions and potato variety selection.

The Joy of Growing Your Own Potatoes

With just a sprouted potato or two, you can grow mounds of potatoes in your own backyard. Homegrown spuds definitely taste better than store-bought!

Let those old potatoes sprout and replant them, rather than throwing them in the compost. You’ll be rewarded with nutritious potatoes all season long.

The process takes minimal effort while teaching beginners valuable gardening skills. Enjoy the experience as much as the harvest when planting sprouted potatoes!